It’s not prejudice that keeps our focus on the West, but rather, our unfamiliarity with how other cultures think about such things. It’s difficult enough to follow the arguments of our own creationists, but we’ve become used to their ways, so that’s what we write about.

This post is one of our few exceptions. We found an article at GhanaWeb, a website that appears to be operated as a news organization for the Republic of Ghana and the rest of Africa. They also have a comments feature. Their cryptic headline is Big Bang and evolution theories are.

Are what? you’re asking. That question gets answered right away. Here are some excerpts, with bold font added by us:

Pastor Mensa Otabil has said the Big Bang and Evolution theories are “lies”.

Aha — that sounds familiar. Although the news story comes from Africa, it could just as easily have been about the sermon of an American preacher. The rev’s arguments aren’t new, so this post is primarily for its geographical, not intellectual novelty. Then we’re told:

The International Central Gospel Church (ICGC) founder told his congregation in Accra on Sunday March 13 that just as lies were concocted against the gospel in Jesus’ time, so are lies being “crafted” and “sponsored” through science to discredit the existence of God and God’s creation of the universe.

We searched, and discovered that everything’s up-to-date in Ghana. The rev’s church has a website: International Central Gospel Church. Okay. The next few paragraphs are some journalist’s description of the Big Bang and Darwin’s theory of evolution. We don’t need to get into that. Then they return to what the rev says:

Pastor Otabil, however, said Christians must disregard these theories, since they have been carefully designed by their proponents to make God non-existent.

He definitely sounds like an American creationist. That is not a compliment. Let’s read more of the rev’s words of wisdom:

It will be naïve on our part to think that all the knowledge out there that has alternative views to the word of God is genuine. It is naïve to think that all the research findings and the scientific evidence against God and against creation is genuine. When people sit and they are researching, somebody is sponsoring the research. Researchers don’t just research; somebody pays for it.

Whoa — that sounds like it’s a conspiracy! The rev continues:

For a long time, the tobacco industry paid researchers to say that cigarette smoking was good. Advertisers gained from it and they advertised cigarettes. It was killing people, but the research said it was good for your health.

That’s why sometimes when I hear people quoting and saying: ‘Well according to this scientist and that scientist, or according to this discovery and according to that discovery, this is how it is. No! There are people who have interest in making sure your God is never credited with who He is because if they can say that there was no creation, that the universe happened by itself, and that out of a universe that happened by itself, out of some matter somewhere, then something became an atom and then became whatever and then eventually became a little worm and that worm graduated and became me, and in the process, I was a monkey, but they have scientific proof. It’s a lie. It’s well-crafted and well-sponsored.

Where is the rev getting his information? From Jack Chick comics? From ol’ Hambo? Who knows, but it’s great stuff! Moving along:

Unfortunately there are a lot of Christians, who have bought into the lie. It’s a well-crafted message and it’s sponsored. Don’t ever be childish and think that every scientific fact is true. Haven’t you seen how scientific research changes – one day egg is good, next day egg is not good; next day the white is good, next day, no, [etc., etc.] and if you sit back thinking somebody is objective, you are a child. A lot of the medicines we take, they are from pharmaceutical companies, they sponsor research, and the thing is killing you [yet] they say it’s curing you. If they can do that to egg and can do that to pharmaceutical products, don’t you think they can do that to the greatest truth of all time?

Admit it, dear reader — that’s a powerful argument! The news story ends with one final quote from the rev:

It’s amazing what the world settles on to fight the Gospel. It may not make sense, but they will settle on it: that this is the story we are going to tell, this is how we are going to counteract the gospel, this is the message we are going to preach, this is how we want people to respond anytime they hear the word of God.

So there you are, dear reader. American style creationism is alive and well in the heart of Africa. Make of it what you will.

7 responses to “Creationism in Africa”

It is difficult for me to see why there is this opposition to the Big Bang.
It was introduced, let us recall, by a Catholic priest. Although this was not his motivation, the opposition was the infinity of the universe, a long-time famous problem for Christianity and Judaism and Islam!

This is Christian fundamentalism creationism covers a huge range as does the label Christian. We have big -bang Christians today and they have a website called reasons to believe.
I recently read a post by a Muslim who said there are two seperate laws God’s holy law and seperate the law of nature. Nature follows its own way and can kill the innocent.
A good way of getting off the hook.

It is difficult for me to see why there is this opposition to the Big Bang.
It was introduced, let us recall, by a Catholic priest. Although this was not his motivation, the opposition was the infinity of the universe, a long-time famous problem for Christianity and Judaism and Islam!

I like to point out to our SC that Ghana Web may not represent the views of Africans as whole given we are a diverse group. However, I think it is safe to assume a majority of Africans are creationists.

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